Israel demolishes buildings, pylons near Bethlehem
BETHLEHEM (Ma‘an) 3 Apr -- Israeli forces demolished four ancient buildings
and uprooted 52 electricity poles in lands near Bethlehem on Tuesday
morning, locals said. The electricity line that connects the
Al-Makhrour neighborhood to nearby Beit Jala was destroyed by
bulldozers, local anti-wall committee coordinator Mazin al-Azza told
Ma‘an ... Al-Makhrour, west of Bethlehem, is considered a natural heritage site by
the Center for Cultural Heritage Preservation. The hillside
neighborhood is slated to be cut off from Beit Jala by Israel's
separation wall, the center says.http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=473633

Video: Struggle of Lifta families
AIC 4 Apr -- 13 families of the Lifta neighborhood in Jerusalem, have
received eviction orders. After having lived there for the past 60
years, the state of Israel has now declared them as "invaders" in their
own homes. The story of this neighbourhood is another chapter in
Israel’s evil policy of intentional discrimination which commenced with
the eviction of Lifta’s original Palestinian residents in 1948, the
settling of Mizrachi Jews (of Middle Eastern or Muslim country origin)
here as human shields in inhuman condition, (when the border ran
alongside the neighbourhood until 1967) criminal neglect of the area
over the years and finally, the vicious trampling of the neighbourhood
residents’ basic rights in an attempt to banish them from their homes,
claiming they are squatters.http://www.alternativenews.org/english/index.php/topics/jerusalem/4272

In Photos: Jordan Valley demolitionsAIC
4 Apr -- On the eve of Palestinian Land Day, Israel demolished homes
and animal shelters in three Bedouin-Palestinian communities in the
Jordan Valley. Several houses and animal shelters were demolished in the
small communities of El Hemmi, Al Farisiya and Khirbet Homse in Area C
of the Jordan Valley on 26 March 2012. “They want to be the masters of
everything,” the wife of a farmer living in Al Farisiya says to
Electronic Intifada. “Look, they destroy even animal shelters. The
Ottomans, the British and the Jordanians have all occupied this land -
but not one of them treated us in this way.” http://www.alternativenews.org/english/index.php/component/content/article/28-news/4271

Settlers 'plant trees on privately owned land' near Bethlehem
BETHLEHEM (Ma‘an) 4 Apr -- ...Popular committee spokesman Ahmad Salah
told Ma‘an that a group of
settlers planted tree saplings on 2,000 square meters of land in the Ein
al-Qassis area of al-Khader. The land belongs to Hasan Mousa
Hasan, who had planted wheat on the fields. Salah said Hasan discovered
the saplings when he went to work on his land. An extremist
settler established an illegal outpost in the area around 10 years ago
and several Israeli families now live in the outpost, Salah said. It is
likely that settlers from the outpost planted the saplings in an attempt
to confiscate more land, he added. Salah noted that Israeli courts have ordered the evacuation of the
outpost several times but none of the orders have been carried out.http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=473822

Israel evicts settlers from Hebron buildingJERUSALEM (Reuters) 4 Apr -- Israeli police evicted Jewish settlers Wednesday
from a building they said they had bought from a Palestinian in the
heart of the West Bank city of Hebron. The presence of the 15
settlers in the two-story structure had caused divisions within Israeli
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's mainly right-wing cabinet, where
Defense Minister Ehud Barak, leader of a centrist party, has pushed for
eviction ... Israeli police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said police and paramilitary
border police carried out the eviction in accordance with a government
decision. There was no violence. The settlers had sought to
expand an illegal settlement of some 500 Israelis in the heart of
Hebron, a city that is home to about 250,000 Palestinians.http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=473929

After Hebron eviction, legalising West Bank outposts
AIC 4 Apr --Following this afternoon’s eviction of settlers from a downtown Hebron building they occupied last week,
Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu announced he is
working to "legalise" the three West Bank outposts of Bruchin, Sansana,
and Rachalim ... The principle which guides me is strengthening the
Jewish presence in Judea and Samaria," Netanyahu said this evening. "We
are strengthening the Jewish presence in Judea and Samaria and
strengthening the Jewish presence in Hebron, the city of our
forefathers." Netanyahu added that "there is one principle that we keep –
we do all of this while obeying the law, and we will continue to do
this." As seen with the aforementioned three outposts, "obeying" the law
often means changing the law.
http://www.alternativenews.org/english/index.php/component/content/article/2-hebron/4274

Israel unveils tenders for 1,121 new settler homes
AFP 4 Apr -- Israel's government on Wednesday published tenders
for 1,121 new settler homes as it faced settler anger over its decision
to evict Israeli families from a disputed home in the Palestinian city
of Hebron. Documents published on the Israeli
housing ministry website showed the government had issued tenders for
872 new homes in Har Homa, a contentious settlement neighbourhood in the
southern part of Arab east Jerusalem. Another 180 are to be built in Givat Zeev, just to the north of Jerusalem
in the West Bank, while the remaining 69 are to be built in Katzrin in
the occupied Golan Heights, the documents showed. Contacted by AFP, a
ministry spokesman dismissed the tenders as "nothing new," but settlement
activists said it was the first time the offers had been made public.http://news.yahoo.com/israel-pm-seeks-legalise-three-settler-outposts-085252470.html

New settlement outpost secretly constructed in JerusalemPNN 4 Apr -- On Tuesday 3rd April, Head of the Committee for the Defense of
Silwan, Fakhri Abu Diab, revealed the Israeli authorities final
settlement outpost that was constructed under the Seven Arches Hotel in
Jabal al-Zaytoun (mountain of Olives), which overlooks al-Aqsa Mosque
and the Old City of Jerusalem. Israeli authorities finished the final preparations of the outpost
and took some photographs of the units. Abu Diab said that Israeli
Security Services was running a number of offices in this region, but
they turned the offices to a settlement outpost that they secretly
constructed at night, in the most sensitive area in Jerusalem.http://english.pnn.ps/index.php/national/1281-new-settlement-outpost-in-zaytoun-mountain-jerusalem

Settlement expanded despite court evacuation orderHEBRON
(WAFA) 4 Apr -- Settlers from Avigal, east of Yatta in
Hebron area, started work on expanding the settlement despite an Israeli
court ruling to evacuate it, a local activist said Wednesday. Ratib
al-Jabour, coordinator of the Popular Committee against the Wall
and Settlements in Yatta, said the settlers began expansion work on the
settlement by building foundations for new structures despite a decision
by an Israeli court to evacuate the land, owned by three different
Palestinian families.http://english.wafa.ps/index.php?action=detail&id=19458

Gambling money finances new East Jerusalem settlement / Sergio Yahni
AIC 3 Apr -- With revenues extracted from an impoverished community in
southern California, the Irving Moskowitz Foundation deepens the
Judaisation of Jerusalem ... Irving Moskowitz is a Florida-based
businessman who built a business purchasing and selling hospitals, as
well as investing in gambling in the American state of California. In
1988 he took over the Bingo parlor of Hawaiian Gardens, a small town in
Los Angeles County, California. The town agreed to accept 1% of gross
receipts, and Moskowitz kept the rest. California state law demands that
bingos should be run on a not-for-profit basis, and Moskowitz thus
established the Irving I. Moskowitz Foundation to administer the
operation in Hawaiian Gardens. The bingo parlor is open 363 days a year
and staffed by “volunteers,” many of them reported to be undocumented
workers who work six or seven days a week for tips.http://www.alternativenews.org/english/index.php/topics/jerusalem/4269

Gaza siege

Fuel tankers arrive in GazaGAZA CITY (Ma‘an) 4 Apr -- A delivery of fuel arrived in Gaza on Wednesday
at the Kerem Shalom crossing on the Israeli border, a Palestinian official
said. Liaison officer Raed Fattouh said he expected around
400,000 liters of fuel to be delivered on Wednesday, adding that the
terminal was equipped to receive double that amount. The delivery
follows a deal announced Tuesday between the Hamas-led government in
Gaza and the Ramallah-based Palestinian Authority to end the power
crisis in the coastal enclave. Gaza government spokesman Taher
al-Nunu said the power authority had transferred 2 million shekels
($537,000) to the PA to pay for the fuel, purchased from Israel ... [PA
spokesman Ghassan] Al-Khatib said daily deliveries of fuel would
continue as long as the Gaza power authority continued to send payment.
It is hoped the interim deal, which allows Hamas to buy fuel from Israel
through PA intermediaries, will ease the power crisis which has plagued
the Gaza Strip since February.http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=473827

Medics identify body found east of Gaza City
GAZA CITY (Ma‘an) 4 Apr -- Medical authorities on Wednesday identified a man
found dead after Israeli forces fired near the Gaza Strip border as a
teenager from Gaza City. Gaza medical official Adham Abu Salmiya
said the body found earlier Wednesday was Hisham Misbah Saad, 17, from
the city's Shujaiyeh neighborhood ... An Israeli military spokeswoman confirmed that forces on the border late
Tuesday fired toward a "suspect crawling toward the security fence" in
the northern Gaza Strip. She said explosive devices were found on the border last week. The
shooting occurred hours after Israel returned the body of Bilal Yousef
al-Saayed, who was killed Saturday under similar circumstances, medics
said.http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=474015

Father of two martyrs survives shelling
GAZA (PIC) 3 Apr -- A 67-year-old Palestinian man survived on Tuesday an
Israeli shelling of his home to the east of Khan Younis, south of the
Gaza Strip, human rights sources said. They told the PIC reporter that
Mohammed Sharab was in his home, which is only 350 meters away from the
separation barrier, when the Israeli occupation forces opened machinegun
fire from their tanks. They said that many bullets penetrated the
house’s windows and rooms, adding that Sharab knew that the Israelis
wanted him to abandon his house but was adamant on staying in it. Sharab
was seriously wounded during the Israeli war on Gaza on 16/1/2009 and
his two sons were killed in the same war.http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k

Neither threats nor murders will stop our demonstrationsISM Gaza by Nathan Stuckey -- Over the weekend Israeli planes dropped flyers over Beit Hanoun and
Beit Lahia warning that anyone who approached within three hundred
meters of the border would be shot. It is not as though the people
don’t know of this policy. As the following conversation between Israeli soldiers makes clear,
this has been policy for many years. The soldiers in this conversation
are discussing the murder of a thirteen year old girl, Iman Darweesh Al
Hams. She was murdered in October 2004 on her way to school. The
chilling transcript relating her murder is still fresh in the minds of
Gazans ...Capt R then
'clarifies' why he killed Iman: This is commander. Anything that’s
mobile, that moves in the zone, even if it’s a three-year-old, needs to
be killed. Over.http://palsolidarity.org/2012/04/neither-threats-nor-murders-will-stop-our-demonstrations/

Political detention

Anan TamimiStop the Wall 2 Apr by Manal Tamimi -- The Zionist IDF arrested the child Anan Naji Tamimi for the third
time during the last forty days. Anan was arrested last month from his
home at 3:00 am in the morning. His charges were participating in
illegal protest and throwing stones, according to a picture one of the
soldiers took during the protest for one of the children while he threw
stones. The lawyer has proved that the pictures the army has are not of Anan
and they released him after [his] paying a guaranteed $500. The general
attorney threaten him that he will arrest him again.
After one month, they arrested him again from his house at 2:00 am in
the morning, interrogated him for two hours, beat him and showed him
the same picture they showed the first time.http://stopthewall.org/anan-tamimi-0

IOA summons 80-year-old mother of prisoner for interrogationAL-KHALIL (PIC) 4 Apr -- The Israeli occupation authority (IOA) summoned
the 80-year-old mother of a Palestinian prisoner and interrogated her
for five hours in Kiryat Arba settlement in Al-Khalil on Tuesday night.
Local sources said that the old woman is the mother of Noor Jaber who is
serving 17 life sentences in Israeli jails. Meanwhile, Wasfiya, the
sister of Jaber, is to attend a trial hearing on Wednesday over the
charge of attempting to smuggle a sim card to her brother in Eshel
prison ... relatives affirmed that the charge was a lie and was
fabricated to block family visits to Jaber, an Islamic Jihad affiliate.http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/En/default.aspx?xyz=U6Qq7k

Israeli forces detain 15 in West Bank overnightHEBRON
(Ma‘an) 4 Apr -- Israeli forces detained 15 Palestinians overnight
Tuesday during raids on the central and southern West Bank, the army
said. An Israeli military spokeswoman said 10 people were detained in
the Hebron district and five from villages around Ramallah. Four people
were detained in Beit Ummar, near Hebron, she said. Beit
Ummar popular committee spokesman Muhammad Awad told Ma‘an that Israeli
forces raided the village in 10 military jeeps at dawn and detained two
former prisoners and two teenagers...Meanwhile in Beit Awwa, west of Hebron, Israeli forces ransacked several
homes before detaining Diyaa Masalmah, 18, Yaser Masalmah, 17, and
Bahaa Masalmah, 17, locals said....http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=473806

Lawyer: 3rd hunger-striker hospitalized in Israel jail
RAMALLAH (Ma‘an) 4 Apr -- A Palestinian detainee who has been on hunger strike
for 28 days was moved to Israel's Ramla prison hospital, a lawyer said
Wednesday. Omar Abu Shalal, 55, from Nablus, has refused food for
four weeks in protest over his detention without charge, Prisoner
Society lawyer Jawwad Boulous told Ma‘an. Abu Shalal is being
held in the same hospital room as detainees Bilal Diab and Thaer Halahla
who have been on hunger strike for 36 days, Boulous said.http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=473967

Marwan Barghouti 'in solitary for 3 weeks'
RAMALLAH (Ma‘an) 4 Apr -- The Israeli prison service will keep Fatah
leader Marwan Barghouti in solitary confinement for three weeks over his
statements to the press, his wife said Tuesday. Fadwa Barghouthi said
she tried to visit her husband on Tuesday but was told he will not be
allowed visitors for two months ... On March 26, Barghouti issued a call
from his cell for a new wave of popular resistance and to end "all forms of security and economic
coordination (with Israel) in all areas immediately." He said
negotiations with Israel had "failed miserably" to end the occupation
and achieve a state and urged for "a renewal of efforts" to seek
statehood at the United Nations.http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=473753

ICC won't probe Gaza war because Palestine is 'not a state'BETHLEHEM (Ma‘an) 3 Apr -- The International Criminal Court will not
investigate Israel's conduct during its December 2008 offensive on Gaza
because Palestine is not a state, the world prosecutor said Tuesday. In a
statement, the ICC prosecutor acknowledged that over 130 countries and
some UN bodies recognize Palestine as a state. But, Palestine still holds observer status in the UN, and so the ICC cannot
at this time investigate allegations of war crimes committed on
Palestinian territory, the prosecutor said. President Mahmoud
Abbas applied for full UN membership in September at the UN Security
Council. The US vowed to use its veto to block the bid and the council
has not yet made any recommendation to admit Palestine...Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman said Tuesday that diplomats
had worked against the Palestinian request for an ICC investigation into
Operation Cast Lead, Israel's 3-week offensive on the Gaza Strip that
left nearly 1,400 Palestinians dead, including 300 children. Commenting
on the ICC's rejection of the bid for a tribunal, Lieberman said: "Not
many understand how much work has been put into this issue," the Israeli
news site Ynet reported.http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=473738

Video: Israeli military shooting directly at press in Kufr Qaddoum
ISM 4 Apr -- On Friday the 30th of March the weekly demonstration was
held in the village Kufr Qaddoum outside of Nablus. This day was however the same
day as the Global March to Jerusalem, meaning less media attention than
normal, and also less internationals present ... The situation was also
more tense than usual, as it was only two weeks ago the IOF (Israeli
Occupation Forces) released attack dogs on the demonstrators, resulting in savage attacks and severe injuries ... “I was standing on the side of the
demonstration, filming when I saw one of the soldiers aiming at me. I
had nowhere to run, so I just covered my head with one of my arms,”
said Al-Jumah. Luckily he was fast enough. The tear gas canister would have hit him right in the face, but instead it hit his
arm and then ricocheted down to his chest. Tear gas canisters are a
fatal weapon used by Israel against nonviolent protesters, using the
crowd dispersion weapon as a projectile directed at destroying human
lifehttp://palsolidarity.org/2012/04/video-israeli-military-shooting-directly-at-press-in-kufr-qaddoum/

BETHLEHEM (Ma‘an) 4 Apr -- A Palestinian man injured in Jerusalem during Land Day last week remains
in a critical condition in hospital, locals said Wednesday. Moussa Harun Abu Mahameed, 30, from Al-Fureidis village in south Bethlehem was injured on Friday and is still in a serious condition in Hadasa hospital in Ein Kerem, the villagers said.

PSP activists join farmers in Surif to plant olive trees
PSP 3 Apr -- On Sunday, April 1, 2012, PSP volunteers joined farmer Arsalon Abu
Ikhdair in Surif to plant olive trees. Volunteers planted around twenty
trees in an area called Al-Deir, which is close to the Darit settlement.
An Israeli-only road and separation fence prevents Abu Ikhdair from
accessing the land that used to belong to his family before 1948.
On Tuesday, April 3, 2012, activists from the Hebron district and
Beit Ommar joined the municipality from Surif to assist farmer Yousef
Hamad in planting olive trees on his land. Activists planted olive trees
on six dunams of land in an area called Wad Assour. Wad Assour is very
close to the Israeli settlements, and the separation fence is only 200
meters from Hamad’s farmlandhttp://palestinesolidarityproject.org/2012/04/03/psp-activists-join-farmers-in-surif-to-plant-olive-trees/

Israel targets Welcome to Palestine campaign
IMEMC 4 Apr -- On Tuesday at dawn Israeli forces raided the city of Bethlehem and
targeted the house of Jacques Nino, general coordinator of Children Play
and Education. Nino's organization is one of the associations [that are] part of the Welcome to
Palestine campaign 2012, in which hundreds of European and American
volunteers will arrive to the occupied Palestinian territories between
the 15th and 21st if April to take part in building schools and
volunteer in local peace building NGOs.http://www.imemc.org/article/63264

PA says committed to free speech, press
RAMALLAH (Ma‘an) 4 Apr -- The Palestinian Authority on Tuesday affirmed its
respect for freedom of speech and the press, but called on journalists
to maintain "professional standards" on public affairs issues. Following a week of arrests and other acts of intimidation against the
Palestinian press, ministers met for their regular cabinet meeting in
Ramallah and insisted the PA would protect journalists' right to work freely.http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=473933

Press freedom group 'shocked' after Israel raidsBETHLEHEM (Ma‘an) 4 Apr -- Reporters Without Borders said Wednesday it
was shocked by Monday's raid by Israeli security forces on a Palestinian
media network set up by Al-Quds University in East Jerusalem ... "They
are doing all they can to prevent the establishment of a free and
independent Palestinian media in occupied Palestinian territory, in East
Jerusalem in particular." The group demanded that the network be
allowed to reopen.http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=474031

Woman jailed for Abbas insult 'in isolation'RAMALLAH (Ma‘an) 4 Apr -- The condition of a woman arrested over her critical writings about President Mahmoud Abbas is deteriorating in isolation, a
member of the Palestinian Journalists Syndicate said Tuesday. Ismat
Abdul Khaliq was seen by doctors late Tuesday before being returned to
her cell, said Nihad Abu Ghosh, a member of the syndicate. He said the
prosecution is refusing to let her see visitors. Prosecutors
accuse Abdul Khaliq of writing a Facebook status update criticizing
Abbas. She has been held since last week after a court extended her
detention for 15 days along with a newspaper reporter.http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=473986

HRW: PA detains another man over Facebook post
BETHLEHEM (Ma‘an) 3 Apr -- Palestinian Authority police on Monday
detained Jamal Hlaihel over a Facebook post deemed critical of the government,
Human Rights Watch reported Tuesday. Hlaihel is the fourth Palestinian
to be arrested recently for criticizing the Ramallah-based government
... While Palestinian journalists have been detained before, the arrest
of four people within a week has raised concerns in the West Bank about
media rights.http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=473734

Political news

Fatah slams PFLP leader's skepticism on unity dealRAMALLAH (Ma‘an) 4 Apr -- Fatah hit back at the PFLP on Wednesday, after the
leftist faction described their reconciliation initiative with former
rivals Hamas as a sham. Popular Front politburo member Rabah Muhanna said in a statement Tuesday: "Hamas and Fatah are lying to each
other, and to the Palestinian people." "Any future meetings (between the parties) will be more lies and a waste of time."Fatah
leader Amin Maqboul said Wednesday Muhanna's remarks were "inflammatory
and defamatory," and called on the PFLP leader to stop acting like a
teacher or judge.http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=473922

Abbas meets Gaza Fatah leaders in Cairo
GAZA CITY (Ma‘an) 4 Apr -- President Mahmoud Abbas met a delegation of Fatah
leaders from Gaza during his recent visit to Cairo, a Fatah committee in
Gaza said. The president told Abdullah Abu Samhadana, Hisham
Abdul-Raziq and Thiab Al-Louh that Fatah remains committed to
reconciliation with Hamas, the committee said in a statement. Abbas
added that a government of technocrats would be established as soon as
the Central Elections Commission is allowed to operate in the Gaza
Strip.http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=473897

UN envoy: Bring killers of Juliano Mer-Khamis to justiceBETHLEHEM
(Ma‘an) 4 Apr -- The UN resident and humanitarian coordinator for the occupied Palestinian territory called Wednesday for the murderer of
Juliano Mer-Khamis to be brought to justice, on the anniversary of the death. "On the first anniversary of the murder," Maxwell Gaylard said he would remember Mer-Khamis as a "visionary and courageous peacemaker and a champion of culture and freedom of expression". He called "upon all concerned authorities to intensify the efforts to bring his murderers to justice."http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=473921

Juliano, one year later / Jen MarloweCounterpunch 4 Apr -- ... One year later, and Juliano’s murderer has not been apprehended. One year later, and Juliano’s colleagues and students at The Freedom Theatre are still dealing with the loss and the trauma,
including the continued trauma of being targeted by the Israeli military
in repeated attacks against the theatre and its staff and students.
Yet one year later, remarkably, The Freedom Theatre continues. And continues to use art as a powerful form of protest andresistance. I hope
you will take a moment to remember (or learn about) Juliano. I hope you will find ways to support and stand in solidarity with the courageous staff and students of The Freedom Theatre.http://www.counterpunch.org/2012/04/04/juliano-one-year-later/

Lawmaker, Islamic scholar Hamed al-Betawi diesNABLUS (Ma‘an) 4 Apr -- Leading Palestinian Islamic scholar and member of
parliament Hamed al-Betawi died on Wednesday after undergoing heart surgery, Hamas officials said. Sheikh Al-Betawi, 68, from Nablus, was elected to the Palestinian Legislative Council in 2006 as a member
of the Hamas-affiliated Change and Reform Bloc. A revered Allama (scholar), Al-Betawi was jailed by Israel several times. His son Fadel Beitawi, 33, was detained in an Israeli night raid on Nablus on Monday night, locals said.http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=474020